and distribution of wild service in Lords Bushes. At least two of the mature trees have
borne chequers (the berry of wild service, also known colloquially in Essex as 'sarves'),
much to the delight of a flock of blackbirds.
Whatever the origin of these trees, Lords Bushes and indeed Epping Forest is
fortunate to possess them and it is also fortunate that when the land immediately east of
Lords Bushes was cleared for agriculture the clearance did not penetrate any further into
Lords Bushes otherwise this could have removed the last vestige of this fine tree from the
woodland. It is interesting to speculate that wild service may have been a frequent tree
on the lower slopes of the Roding Valley before its clearance for cultivation.
LOWER PLANTS
Mosses
Essex, lacking in rock exposures or a variety of relief and being one of the least
humid counties in Great Britain, is not a 'good' county for Bryophytes. In Lords Bushes,
the close proximity of urban and industrial areas with their associated pollution
precludes the presence of many species of bryophyte. I have records of just 22 species of
moss (I have recorded only on the burnt and disturbed area of Lords Bushes) noted
mostly in the winter of 1978-79.
The burnt and disturbed area with its open ground, exposed gravels, numerous tree
stumps and fallen trees has provided a great variety of micro-habitat for colonisation by
mosses. Of particular interest are the Polytrichum spp, which have undoubtedly
benefited from the clearance (they do not appear to be present in the undisturbed wood-
land but are of very frequent occurrence on the burnt and disturbed area). Apart from in
Epping Forest this genus, typical of acid substrates, is uncommon in Essex. The acid
nature of Lords Bushes is further underlined by the presence of Tetraphis pellucida and
indeed the majority of mosses recorded are typically found in woodlands of low pH.
Another micro-habitat are the bonfire sites which were readily colonised by great mats of
the moss Funaria hygrometrica though this species also occurred extensively on the
exposed gravels.
The species listed below and the micro-habitat is indicated by a letter thus:
G Ground
B Bark (tree species in brackets)
D Decaying wood
F Bonfire site
Nomenclature for Mosses and Liverworts follows Jermyn S. T. (34).
Atrichum undulatum G Hypnum cupressiforme G,B (Hornbeam)
Aulacomnium androgynum D Isopterigium eligans G
Brachythecium rutabulum G Mnium hornum G
velutinum G Orthodontium lineare D
Campylopus introflexus G Plagiothecium curvifolium B (Hornbeam)
Ceratodon purpureus G Pohlia nutans G
Dicranella heteromalla G Polytrichum commune G
Dicranoweisia cirrata B (Beech) formosum G
Dicranum scoparium B (Beech stump) juniperinum G
Eurhynchium praelongum D.B (Hornbeam) piliferum G
Funaria hygrometrica F,G Tetraphis pellucida B (Birch stump)
44